Electrical connectors having built-in indicator lights have been known for some time. In these connectors, the indicator lights typically are located at the front of the connector. A typical connector may include an integral LED device to emit a light which indicates an operational function such as the reception or transmission of data or voice signals, verification of a good connection between separate pieces of equipment, indication when power is on or off, indication of a defect in a network transmission or any other state or condition in the equipment with which the connector is operatively associated.
Visual light indicating connectors are popular in modular jacks or similar types of connectors commonly used in telecommunications and data networking equipment. These jacks often are mounted on a circuit board to which they are to be connected. Problems have been encountered in incorporating such light indicating devices, such as LED devices, directly onto the connector due to the ever-increasing miniaturization of telecommunications and data networking equipment. There simply is not enough space to mount many LED devices directly on the connector housing. In addition, regardless of the size of the connector or jack, connectors which include light transmitting devices are expensive to manufacture and assembly for an otherwise relatively inexpensive component.
Also, integrating active visual indicators can introduce serious electromagnetic interference (EMI), due to the relatively high vertical distance of the associated indicator wiring from the PCB ground plane.
The present invention is directed to solving these problems by providing an electrical connector or modular jack which has light indicating capabilities without mounting the source of the light directly on the connector itself.